Chevrolet Volt to Sell for $75,333 in China with No Rebate

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The Volt is creating a mini-crisis in the bilateral relationship between the two great powers.

The Chevrolet Volt is coming to China and it is not going to be cheap for prospective customers. The price of the plug-in hybrid electric has been set at a staggering $75,333 (or if you're Chinese then it's RMB 2,000 shy of RMB 500,000). In the U.S. the Volt's priced at $41,000 and after a $7,500 tax break the cost is just $33,500. However no rebates are being offered for Chinese customers just yet. Thing is, the Chinese want to build the Volt in China, which would involve the transfer of the Volt's technology.

However, GM and the American government are reluctant to do this due to the likelihood of intellectual property theft. In retaliation the Chinese government is refusing to grant the Volt the $19,500 rebate offered to other electric cars in China. The Chevrolet Volt will be sold in China in 13 Shanghai Chevrolet dealerships and in eight other cities including Beijing. So the question is whether GM is willing to give up this technology for the sake of selling Volts in the fastest growing automotive market in the world? Yeah, this is going to be interesting.